Tuesday, May 6, 2014

Egyptian Government Formally Requests Emergency Import Restrictions from U.S. State Department

The Egyptian government has formally requested that the State Department impose emergency restrictions on the
import of Egyptian antiquities into the United States without the appropriate
documentation.Since the January 2011
Revolution, massive looting has occurred at every major Egyptian archaeological
site, in addition to systematic and organized targeting of museums, government
storage units, religious institutions as well as significant illicit
excavations.Research by the Antiquities Coalition shows that looting at sites has increased between 500 and 1000% since
the January 2011 Revolution.

Antiquity dealers and collectors from Michigan, New York,
Virginia and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) conspired to
smuggle illicit cultural property - Egyptian Middle Eastern
and Asian antiquities - into the United States and conspired
to “launder money in furtherance of smuggling.”
Credit: U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement

The United States is one of the top markets for the sale of Egyptian antiquities.We urge the Cultural Heritage Advisory
Committee (CPAC) to make a positive recommendation to the State Department to
halt the import of illicit Egyptian antiquities.

A positive recommendation
will be important in the fight against cultural
racketeering – the systematic and organized looting of archaeological sites
by criminal networks.Cultural
racketeering is a global issue faced by many countries, including Syria, Libya,
Peru, Guatemala and more.

The
CPAC will begin its review of the cultural property
request from the Government of the Arab Republic of Egypt at a hearing on June
2-4.The Public portion of the hearing
will occur on June 2.

Egypt
is the land that gave us the pyramids, Cleopatra, and the Valley of the Kings.
Its unrivaled culture has entranced the world, offering us uncountable hours of
fascination and enjoyment. Now, it’s time to honor Egypt’s invaluable gifts to
the world and rally together to defend some of humanity’s greatest creations.

Supporters
can submit written comments for the CPAC to consider as part of their
determination at the eRulemaking Portal (http://www.regulations.gov),
enter the Docket No. DOS-2014-0008, and follow the prompts to submit a comment. All written comments must be received no later than May 14,
2014 at 11:59 p.m. (EDT).

No comments:

Post a Comment

About The Antiquities Coalition

The Antiquities Coalition unites professionals from a diverse background joined in the fight against cultural racketeering – a global problem.
A diverse group of archaeologists, technology experts, writers and scholars came together around our common interest in protecting cultural heritage. The International Coalition to Protect Egyptian Antiquities (ICPEA) – an initiative of the Antiquities Coalition – was launched. Invited by the Egyptian government to discuss ways to best support them, the ICPEA and the Egyptian Ministry of Antiquities developed a public private partnership. The Partnership covers three main categories – training, education, and social entrepreneurship.
Our mission is to safeguard global heritage while inspiring people to appreciate our shared culture and empower local communities to steward and protect it.